Cameraman, Raheem (center, Jakeem Dante Powell), and PhD student, Choton (right, Abrar Haque) interview Shou (left, Tashnuva Anan) in Public Obscenities.
Shayok Misha Chowdhury's semi-autobiographical Public Obscenities returns to the stage this season at Theatre for a New Audience as part of The Under the Radar Festival. The production explores themes of returning home and complex relationships as a queer Indian man tries to come to terms with his family’s secrets while breaking away from learned behavior.
As writer and director, Chowdhury shares the source of his inspiration for his two-act play and says, "In 1985, my Mama—my mother's only brother—had a dream. In his dream, Mama was in a movie theater, watching a movie. And he described the movie to me in meticulous detail. Shot for shot. As if he wanted me to go make the movie: me, his artist nephew, living in New York. I recorded a voice memo of our conversation, sitting in our sitting room in Kolkata. And that recording of Mama's dream inspired me to write Public Obscenities. Instead of making a movie, I wrote a play about who gets to be an artist and what to do with all the unexpected things we inherit, that we're left with after people leave us."
Uncle Pishe (left, Debashis Roy Chowdhury) and Powell.
When visiting his Aunt Pishimoni (Gargi Mukherjee) and Uncle Pishe (Debashis Roy Chowdhury) in India, Choton (Abrar Haque) discovers information about his stern grandfather who believed in hard work and maintaining order. For his PhD project, Choton conducts video interviews with gay individuals from South Kolkata on their experiences using Grindr. Choton’s boyfriend and cameraman, Raheem (Jakeem Dante Powell), operates a camera belonging to Choton's deceased grandfather and they find an undeveloped roll of film. The conservative image of Choton's grandfather begins to peel away when the film is developed.
The pictures are hidden from the audience, but Choton’s amazement informs the audience that he has never seen his grandfather so happy and vibrant before. Choton wonders if the person who took the photos made his grandfather smile, but no one knows who took the photos. They show a different side to him that the family never saw. The picture of him hanging in Aunt Pishimoni’s living room where he appears serious is how he is typically remembered. Aunt Pishimoni does not want to discuss the issue anymore and politely carries on as though nothing ever happened since she prefers to hold onto the traditional memory of her father.
Choton acknowledges how his family practices secrecy by avoiding addressing situations and he realizes how he has inherited shame from them. As he tries to learn about his family, and in turn himself, he finds that people are a well of private thoughts and feelings. He also believes he would be more comfortable with himself if his father had talked to him about his body. When Raheem attempts to adjust Choton's foreskin, they are interrupted by the family housekeeper, Jitesh (Golam Sarwar Harun). Choton is not embarrassed in front of Jitesh, and the reasoning as to why he reacts this way is not explored any further. But he feels shameful in the presence of Raheem because his father never told him how to push back his foreskin.
Chowdhury touches on concepts of public and private moments for almost three hours and a more in-depth exploration into these ideas could move the story further ahead. Keeping certain parts of a person’s life hidden while sharing other parts to foster personal growth and help others is also explored. The events throughout this play generally begin lively and then die down like when Uncle Pishe starts flirting with someone online and then he eventually passes away. Debashis Roy Chowdhury gives a heartfelt and memorable performance as Uncle Pishe.
Aunt Pishimoni (left, Gargi Mukherjee) and Haque looking at a photo album. Photos by Hollis King.
Public Obscenities is mainly performed in English, but some of the dialogue is spoken in Bangla. The use of Bangla adds warmth and intimacy to the scenes, and the Indian advertisements shown before the play begins create a natural touch. However, it can be difficult for audiences to fully understand everything at times since parts of the dialogue in Bangla are missing English subtitles.
Otherwise, the seamless display of the English subtitles compliments the impressive set that is designed after the playwright’s home. Scenic Designer, Peiyi Wong uses uncanny details to create an authentic environment. Johnny Moreno’s visual display of the chat messaging between Uncle Pishe and his online friend works well because the messages are clear and large enough for audiences to view with ease. There is still more for this play to discover as Choton and his family try to better understand one another and the world they live in.
Theater for a New Audience’s Public Obscenities runs through Feb. 18 at the Polonsky Shakespeare Center (262 Ashland Place, Brooklyn). Weekday evening performances are at 7:30 pm. Saturday and Sunday performances are at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. For tickets and more information, visit tfana.org.
Playwright: Shayok Misha Chowdhury
Director: Shayok Misha Chowdhury
Sets: Peiyi Wong
Costumes: Enver Chakartash
Lighting: Barbara Samuels
Sound Design: Tei Blow
